The Wahkiakum County Eagle - Established as The Skamokawa Eagle in 1891

SOME DAMPNESS--Our past weekend was pretty nice, after thick fog in the morning hours. A couple days prior to that though, we had some "heavy mist" here and I thought that was just great! Not everybody got damp like we did west of Skamokawa, but hey, I'll gladly take any moisture that comes our way these days. This week's forecast is for some pretty decent days with a few clouds but warming up by the time you read this.

SPECIAL DAYS--Those celebrating birthdays from Sept. 2-8 are Quin Bassi, Tristan Collupy, Glenn Wiest, Kathy McNally, Chuck Beyer, Janet Seaberg, Jamie Jacobson, Brett Deaton, Nichole Olsen, Troy Davis, Casey Johnson, Paul Toney, Nathan Takko, Nathan Rose, Frank Schubert, Jade Havens, Dallas Gott-Burdick, Dan Lloyd, Bella and Lucca Hummel, JoAnne Reed, Donna Peterson Bernard, Scott Baldwin and Bill Chamberlain.

Those celebrating anniversaries this week are Todd and Kristen Souvenir, Mr. and Mrs. Mike Backman, Mr. and Mrs. Phil Anderson, Mr. and Mrs. Ed Johnson and Mr. and Mrs. Gary Havens. May all of your upcoming special days bring you happiness and long lasting memories.

FRIDAY MARKET--This Friday, Sept. 3, is the next to the last Farmer's Market in Cathlamet at the marina, so we hope you'll take advantage of that. Hours are 3 to 6 p.m., and the forecast looks to be a sunny one so a good time to check out all the vendors. Remember, Sept. 10 will be the last one for the year, so don't put off coming down to the marina while you can!

WAH. FARM & FIBER FESTIVAL--Head to the Wahkiakum Co. fairgrounds on Sept. 10 -12 for some "Food, Fun & Fiber" where classes and demonstrations will be going on, as well as live animals and fleece sales. There will be various vendors and Fiber Arts Exhibits and on Sunday there will be a Pygora Goat Show, so here's your chance to enjoy some great down home country doings! For more information about the event or about being a vendor, call 360-703-7291 or 360-904-6065.

WHS 1971 REUNION--It's time for all members of the Wahkiakum High School Class of ‘71 to gather for your 50th class reunion, which will be held Sept. 11 in Skamokawa. You'll meet at around 4 p.m., with the plan to meet at Vista Park if the weather is good and at the Skamokawa Grange if it's bad, but for all the very latest info, contact Cindy Seaberg Faubion at 360-957-3336 and spread the word to your fellow classmates! I hope you all have a good time and enjoy this very special half century reunion!

CONDOLENCES--Don Fletcher had asked ‘66'ers Gary and Vicki Bergseng to pass the news that his wife, Nancy (Wallace), passed away on Aug. 30. Nancy was one of those really sweet gals we went to school with and who was also a 1966 WHS class member and we are certainly saddened by the news of her passing. Our sympathies go out to her husband and family and all her close friends and classmates.

We also learned of the passing of Neil R. Johnson on Aug. 29, who was the brother of Karen Johnson Lawrence, wife of 67'er, Keith. Karen is extremely saddened by the loss of her brother but is also relieved that he is no longer in such pain and misery. Besides his sister, Neil leaves behind his wife, Laura and children and extended family members and we send our condolences to all of them. May he now rest in peace.

FOOTBALL BEGINS--Speaking of Wahkiakum High School, those Mighty Mules will start their football season this Friday night, Sept. 3, with a homecoming game against Raymond/South Bend, and they hope to see you there. Games start at 7 p.m. Go Mules! If you're one that likes to plan ahead, they will play at Mossyrock next Friday, Sept. 10 at the same time, as far as we know.

CAN YOU HELP?--A 15 year old local gal, Makayla Davis, is looking for sponsorship for the upcoming JR Rodeo Season and she could sure use our help. Whether you are a small company or a big one, or just an individual who would like like to help this young lady fulfill her dream, I'm sure all the help that is offered would be deeply appreciated. She had a great weekend as she took part in her first three day barrel race competition at a CWP Wounded Warriors benefit and she did quite well, so congratulations to her and her shiny new CWP belt buckle! If you'd like to help, her folks are David and Crystal Davis who can be reached at 360-560-4964 or you can contact them by email at Crystaldavis_27@yahoo.com.

LOOKING FOR PICTURES--We have some new folks moving to Skamokawa soon, and they have reached out to the curator of our museum, Kari Kandoll, to see if there are any pictures of the old Riley barn prior to the lean-to's being added to it. In case you don't remember, Richard and Annette Riley owned the big barn at 690 East Valley Road, and during that time, they also owned a house that was nearby. The new folks, Dwight and Cheryl Peterson, only own the barn and property there now, but beings they'd like to restore this structure, they sure would enjoy seeing any old photos from back in the day in order to put it back to its original state, so, can you help? Unfortunately the museum did not have any but we're hoping that someone would have some and be willing to share with the new owners. Kari can copy any photos you have so that she can share them with the Petersons. You can contact Kari at 360-849-4353 or you can even contact the new owners directly via email: dwightp@easystreet.net. Your help would certainly be appreciated!

FOS--A Cornucopia of Treasures Online Auction to benefit the Friends of Skamokawa will take place October 9-16 at http://www.32auction.com/fos and members of the FOS hope you will join in and bid on some of their fabulous prizes like trips, artwork, gift certificates, various services and more when that date arrives. In the meantime, to make this an even bigger and better auction, your donation towards this fund raiser would be truly welcomed as the more items they have to bid on, the more money they can raise, which benefits the historic Central School/Redmen Hall building in Skamokawa.

If you haven't already received a letter and donation slip and would like to help out, contact the hall at 360-795-3007 or email them at fos1894@gmail.com. You can also just stop by and drop off an item and fill out the paperwork there. Your donations are tax deductible.

NOT GOOD WEATHER--Currently, our area is looking pretty good in comparison to the massive amount of folks living in the southeast, who wound up getting slammed by Hurricane Ida, which arrived on the same day as Hurricane Katrina 16 years ago. Katrina landed as a Cat 3, while Ida hit as a Cat 4 and as of this writing, it has been downgraded to a tropical storm but it is still dumping a lot of rain and wreaking havoc on poor Louisiana, as well as Mississippi.

GET PREPARED--Once again, this is a reminder for all of us to ready for the possibility of inclement weather which means having emergency supplies on hand in case you can't get to the store, or the power goes out or the roads are closed due to slides or flooding. For those who are new, well, you've got some time yet to figure out what your needs are and just how you are going to manage during an emergency situation. We always hope that we don't have one, but that doesn't mean we shouldn't be prepared in case we do.

The Wahkiakum County Department of Emergency Management urges you to have a kit made up of essentials and at least a 3-5 day supply of things, although that is really the bare minimum and most officials now advise having a plan that will sustain you for at least a week. You can check out their local website or one of the federal sites that have all the info on it, and you could always contact our DEM co-ordinator, Beau Renfro via the non-emergency Sheriff's number, 360-795-3242 if you're truly stumped about what you need. Mostly, it's common sense: food, water, shelter, flashlights, a source of alternative power, source of heat, etc. If you have pets, you'll want to plan for them too. Remember, the more prepared you are, the less stress you'll have.

OUT OF THE PAST--This week back in 1941, the first several days were very wet, just like the three days prior to that! The Frank Shanes from Seattle were visiting the Ralph (Elsie) Everests but the wet conditions didn't lend itself to many outdoor activities, but they did get to visit with several of the family members, including the family of Marian Everest Healy and Carol Everest Pedersen. Carol's husband, Krist Pedersen was in Kodiak, AK fishing with the Taylors that particular week, and a letter received later on indicated they would be coming home on Sept. 27. Ralph B. Pedersen wound up having to go to the doctor that week and a date was set to have his tonsils taken out later that month. The Everests, along with grandson, Ralph, headed to the show, "Great American Broadcast" and then it was back home to make a spice cake and some applesauce. On Sept. 7, President Roosevelt's mother passed away at the age of 86.

In 1951, the week began very hot and remained that way for several days, and on one of those days, Krist Pedersen arrived home from fishing in Alaska, which was certainly a big temperature change for him. However, in spite of all the prior heat, on Sept. 7, it opted to rain, which made the trip to the County Fair in Skamokawa, a little less pleasurable for Elsie Everest, who went there with Elva Mast that day; still, they got to do a good amount of visiting with the folks they knew, which was just about everybody! In San Francisco, Sept. 8 was the day that the Japanese Peace treaty conference formally ended at 11:45 a.m. The signing took one hour and 12 minutes, with the closing address by U.S. Secretary of State Acheson. All this according to my Grandma Elsie Everest's diaries.

SAD TIMES--We cannot end this column without recognizing the loss of the 13 brave and honorable members of our military personnel in Afghanistan during a suicide attack at the airport in Kabul. Our hearts just break for all those whose lives were cut short and we send all their families our deepest and sincerest condolences.